Category Archives: On Press Row
Full o’ Buster
As I watch ESPN’s promos for the tireless work of baseball reporter Buster Olney — constantly taking phone calls, talking in Japanese to Ichiro, passing himself as he walks out of a building — I sometimes pause to consider how improbable this would have seemed in the ’90s.
I worked with Buster when he covered the Orioles for The Sun in 1995 and 1996. In fact, it was a running joke with one of my former bosses that Buster was “my hire.” In actuality, I was one of the sports department managers who was involved in reviewing candidates and I kind of favored another writer over Buster — yet another example of my poor judgment.
Of course, Buster turned out to be a terrific baseball beat guy — smart, plugged-in, insightful. He wrote great game stories that focused on the pivotal moments and key decisions. And no one outworked him as a reporter. He was hypercompetitive. In fact, his relationship with one of his Sun baseball colleagues was strained by the fact that this reporter was very friendly with The Washington Post‘s Orioles writer, back when The Sun and Post competed on the beat.
The thing is, I never would have pegged Buster as a future TV personality. I used to wonder whether he ever even smiled. That same guy who was always so serious every time we spoke now can sit in and crack wise on Mike & Mike in the Morning?
Then again, maybe Buster always was funny, but I wasn’t sharp enough to realize it.
You don’t care about steroids, right?
Drip, drip, drip … two more names from the infamous 2003 positive drug-test list — Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz. Given Ramirez’s suspension this year, his appearance in The New York Times report can’t be too much of a surprise. Ortiz, on the other hand, had said in February that players testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs should get a one-year ban from baseball.
But I mention today’s report not to open a debate on whether the Red Sox’s 2004 world championship was tainted, but rather to point out something you hear quite a bit whenever a new steroid-related report hits. The argument, particularly on sports radio, is how the media are obsessed with steroids in baseball while hardly any fans care. The media continue to report on steroids only because, the argument goes, it attracts attention and thus sells papers, adds to the broadcast audience or drives up page views.
What I don’t quite understand about that take is how, on one hand, you can say nobody cares about steroids, then, on the other, say the media report about performance-enhancing drugs only to draw more attention. If nobody cares, then how can the media be benefiting by running stories about the issue?
See, this is yet another reason why I could never be any good on radio.
From press box to front office
Mets general manager Omar Minaya went into full blame-the-messenger mode after the club fired team executive Tony Bernazard, whose bizarre behavior first was reported by the New York Daily News‘ Adam Rubin. After Minaya basically said Rubin wrote the stories in some kind of effort to get himself a front-office job, Mets chief Jeff Wilpon said Tuesday his GM messed up and should apologize to Rubin.
Rubin acknowledged he had spoken with Wilpon in general terms about how to approach landing a job in baseball. It’s not unprecedented for a sportswriter to end up with a top position in a club’s front office. A long time ago, I covered Philadelphia Flyers games with Ned Colletti, now GM of the Dodgers. The late GM Harry Dalton began his career writing sports before he moved on to build baseball teams. Former NFL executive Ernie Accorsi wrote for a few newspapers, and while with The Philadelphia Inquirer, got the scoop on the 76ers’ trade of Wilt Chamberlain. Jim Miller, also an NFL executive, mostly with the Saints, covered sports for a couple of newspapers, including Baltimore’s Evening Sun, which once employed Accorsi, too.
And if any team is interested, I’m available.
SMJ the Toddler
I started Sports Media Journal (SMJ) two years ago this week. No big deal really. One of my first articles was a piece entitled What I Like About Sports Media- 2007. Not much has changed in terms of how I view the sports media industry.
The onsie to the left shows us that we are still young and learning. I wanted this site to be different. I did not want to rehash the days’ sports media news, although I did reserve the right to comment on those stories from time to time. There are plenty of sites that spend their time linking to stories all day. They are better at it than I. I do provide links on Fridays, the busiest day when it comes to print stories on the sports media.
I also never wanted SMJ to delve into the realm of rumor mongering. That just insults the intelligence of our readers. Again, if you want innuendo and gossip, there is plenty out there to find. Just not here.
I always wanted the site to be a little smarter. Go to the source to find out about those in the business. I have been fortunate to interview some of those people in the past. I strive to do more in that area. I also wanted to use the site as a window into what it’s like to work in this field. Our “On Press Row” series gives readers an insight into what the conditions are like for the media at various sporting events.
I’ve also delved into the world of podcasting. It’s many times easier for me to interview members of the media by turning them into podcasts than to transcribe their every word. Going forward expect more podcasts…and the introduction of video.
I make no bones about the fact that as much as I want SMJ to succeed, this is a part time venture for me. If someone wants to step up to hire me to do this full time, your Google Reader wouldn’t know what hit it. But that’s not the case. My full time job (which by the way is in the media), my wife, and my daughter take priority. I know the key to writing a successful blog is to post, post, post. I won’t do that if what I write is superficial. That makes no sense.
I’ve had some help along the way. Thanks to T.J. Donegan for taking time from his educational pursuits to write for SMJ from time to time. If anyone else wants to write for us, drop me a line.
I constantly seek ideas on how to make SMJ better. I believe in not re-inventing the wheel. How do the successful sports blogs do it? I wasn’t sure, so I asked them. Their responses will be part of our next big endeavor.
Coming real soon, SMJ’s look at The Sports Blogger 2009.
Let me know how we can improve Sports Media Journal. Thanks for checking in these last two years.
On Press Row- Fenway Park, Boston
For the life-long baseball fan, a visit to Fenway Park is a must stop. For the baseball journalist, an assignment in the Fenway press box is also something special.
I had the opportunity last month to cover a baseball game from the Fenway press box. Before you jump the gun wondering how a sports blogger was able to invade the domain reserved for the Baseball Writers Association of America, the game I was covering was not part of the Red Sox’ schedule. It was this. Why I was there will be part of a future feature story here at SMJ.
Like the park, the Fenway press box has gone through many renovations over the years, and its current configuration fits well into the historic nature of the stadium.
The Red Sox have made their intentions known of their goal to be more environmental friendly, and one of the first things I noticed as I reached the top of the ramp leading to the press box was the placement of solar panels on the roof. I’m not sure if this is a recent development, but a good gesture nonetheless.
On the wall just outside the press box you will see the following quote from former Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti…
Entering the press area you walk through a hallway with its walls decorated with copies of local and national newspaper pages chronicling the Red Sox’ World Series Championships of 2004 and 2007. The Red Sox are not shy about sharing their successes with all.
The working portion of the press box consists of four levels that can serve a little over 100 reporters. From this location, your vantage point of the game is quite distant, but it does give one a great view of the Boston skyline.
On both ends of the front row are microphones where the official scorer and Red Sox officials sit and make rulings and announcements to all the press throughout the game.
The press box is fully equipped with high-speed wireless Internet access. On the right wall of the press box is a flat screen television tuned in to all the action.
There is an overflow area behind the press box area for other members of the media not assigned a seat to take in the game. The room is sponsored by Funai, and also has its walls covered with newspaper accounts of Red Sox teams past.
In the press box hallway the rules of the work area are clearly displayed. (Good thing no one saw me violating #5). The MLB media regulations are available in English, Spanish, and for those from the Far East, Japanese. I guess the regulations are unchanged since last year.
The press box houses seven electronic media booths for radio and television broadcasts. The booths are labeled A through G. The entrances of many possess a photo of a Red Sox broadcast legend. What was most fascinating is the sign that adorns Booth F. It doesn’t appear to be the booth for either the Sox’ flagship radio station WRKO or NESN television. If anyone knows the back story on this, please drop me a line.
There is a separate large booth to the far left of the press box which houses the stadium’s in-house audio and video equipment.
For the games I attended, notes and information were provided by the minor league teams in action. Because they were regular season games for these clubs, much of the official staffing for the games were handled by the Red Sox minor league affiliates, from the official scorer to the pubic address announcer. So it wasn’t just a thrill for the players to take in the Fenway experience, the game day staff of the teams also got a taste of the big leagues.
Also part of the Fenway press box area is a self-service cafeteria. For Red Sox games the press is charged $10 for that day’s buffet. The day I was there the fee was only $5 and the meal consisted of an extra long hot dog, chips, Caesar salad, soft drinks, and ice cream. Not gourmet press box fare but still affordable compared to the food available to the fans. There is also a small food counter area behind the working press box where reporters can access free soft drinks, coffee, and popcorn.
The doubleheader featured wins by both Red Sox minor league clubs. What made the experience a little more difficult for the press was that none of the four teams had access to the Red Sox or visiting clubhouses. All teams were sequestered in a make-shift clubhouse located in a private reception area behind the bleachers in centerfield. Post game interviews were held on the field immediately after the game.
The Red Sox ownership has made upgrades to Fenway Park with the wishes of the fans in mind. With their state-of-the art press box, the media is also well served.
